Seven years ago, I boarded a flight that forever changed the direction of my life. The flight took me from Los Angeles, my home for the previous two years, to Sydney, Australia. Sydney was the first stop on a largely unplanned year of traveling around the world. The route would take me home by way of Asia …
One of the scariest obstacles to international travel is often the health question. In my planning stages for my own round the world trip, I fretted over the health side of the equation because it was the big unknown. Staying healthy while traveling is a priority, but beyond vaccinating myself, stocking my medical kit, and …
As a long-term traveler on the road for more than eight years, I have carefully tested and tried countless travel products. My first was for the perfect travel purse—and after several years on the road, I found one that does the trick for most types of trip. Travelers don’t have a lot of extra space, so …
When set off traveling in 2008, I never fathomed what a data hog I would become over the years. I left the US with my trusty (but old) PC laptop and a point and shoot camera. And what’s hilarious to me now, is that I felt like I was overdoing it compared to the romantic …
Now that Ana and I are firmly back from our six months in Southeast Asia, I feel compelled to reflect back on some of the technicalities of traveling. There will be more stories, but some aspects preparing for our trip were far more stressful for me than needed . . . and once on the road a …
Since I first left to travel in 2008, my camera gear used to capture images all over the world has changed quite a bit. In that first year, I left with a trusty Canon point-and-shoot camera. That worked really well. But over time I switched to the mirrorless, micro four-thirds camera systems because I wanted …
After hatching a slightly crazy plan to travel with my 11-year-old niece for seven months across Southeast Asia, there was a lot I’ve had to get in order as her primary guardian in this endeavor. Top on the list was tackling our homeschooling travel plan. Then I had flights, accommodation, soothing the fears of a …
Traveling lacks predictability. For a Type A-er like me that causes heart palpitations at random times, but I also love the constant pressure to think on my feet and come up with instant and creative solutions to problems I never anticipated.
Sometimes this means just verbal and active solutions, but other times it’s a mad scrounge through my backpack to find the needed ingredients to diffuse that bomb in my hostel room.
Wait. Errr. You mean there’s no bomb?